Reviews

Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi

halierivers's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

What can I say about this book without typing an essay? 

A brilliant mix of spirituality, trauma, loss, gender identity, mental illness, and sexuality. Not at all a happy go-lucky time, but one that devours you page after page. 

I finished this in one sitting and I just keep sitting here, deeply sighing to myself from the satisfaction of a great book. And incredible storytelling talent. 

I liked it so much, I want to read it twice and fully plan to get my own copy for annotations. 

I want to sit around and talk about this book for hours with other people who have read it. 

jasoncfish's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

doctabird's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

keraashley's review against another edition

4.0

This wasn’t exactly what I thought it would be, but so interesting and good. Hearing about Ada’s life from the Gods that live inside her, was so well done. It’s a bit harrowing overall and I think it would have been tougher to get through if I hadn’t read it all at once on a plane. But very worth a read.

kelligrace's review

dark emotional

4.0

veggiestrawenjoyer13's review against another edition

The concept was interesting and I was hooked in the beginning. The writing style was just not for me. I can definitely see how people enjoy this book and connect with it though. It’s not a bad book, just not for me. The writing got a little much for me and it was hard to understand what was going on, I started just skimming pages. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Self harm, and Sexual content

Moderate: Child death and Misogyny

notoriousesr's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Ada has always been different. Maybe it’s because, in her human body, she hosts spirits from a world far beyond our own. In this tale of myth and madness, Ada must navigate how to exist in a world not meant for gods.

I can see why this book has resonated so deeply with so many people. Though I don’t think it resonated with me in a similar way, I understand its power. The language is beautiful and I appreciated how the incorporation of Nigerian spiritual tradition made me look at “madness” through a different lens. However, through all this beauty, I found the narrative to be a bit incomplete and disjointed. Though we spend the entire book literally inside Ada’s head, most of the seminal events in her life are narrated, rather than shown, and sometimes even tossed offhand. In many ways, this was a missed opportunity, and made me feel less able to connect to Ada’s story. I’m not discrediting the kaleidoscopic style, but I still wish it could’ve had clearer development within that style. Overall, I’m giving this book 3 out of 5 pythons.

eli_abroad's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

A unique exploration of the fractured self and how it manifests in the life of a young woman. It was not an enjoyable read for me, but I have to recognize the beauty in the complex portrait the author painted and the skill employed in creating it. There's also an element of cultural ignorance I felt (the religious and/or folkloric references were complete unknowns) that made the read uncomfortable. I wish I had the motivation to explore those elements to alleviate some of my discomfort, but unfortunately, the length of my TBR makes me content with just accepting that it wasn't a book for me and moving on.

suzannahslibrary's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional medium-paced

4.0

indy_q's review against another edition

4.0

A stunning piece of contemporary fiction. I loved this. It made me laugh and cry and despite some hard topics I couldn’t put it down. I think I read this in a couple of days.